Saving Animals Through Photography

Experts estimate that half of our planet's species will become extinct by the year 2100. National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore is trying to change those projections. He aims to inspire people to care more about the animals we share Earth with through stunning photography. To date, Sartore has photographed more than 5,000 species in zoos and preserves around the world. His goal is to complete portraits of the world's 12,000 captive species and to compile them in his Photo Ark project—before they disappear.

The National Geographic Live series brings thought-provoking presentations by today’s leading explorers, scientists, photographers, and performing artists right to you. Each presentation is filmed in front of a live audience at National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C. New clips air every Monday.

Joel Sartore: Half of all species could be lost to extinction by 2100. Half of every species of bird or frog or fish you've ever known as a child. Half of everything could be gone by 2100. The great thing is it doesn't have to be that way. All these amazing creatures can be saved. We just have to put a little attention into it.

As I've gone forward through my career I started to do more and more stories on conservation, and to me, good pictures should come from the conservation side. I started looking through my archives and I thought well, I've photographed cause and effect maybe this will help change minds 'cause in 20 stories, 25 stories we hadn't moved we hadn't moved the needle very much. What could I do? Well, the Northern Spotted Owl maybe we do cause and effect in one still photograph. The Northern Spotted Owl gets along fine unless you cut all the trees down. Gopher Tortoise does pretty well unless you put a highway through its preserve. This little beach mouse in Alabama he can live between the houses in the dunes but he can't tolerate a 10-acre asphalt parking lot. Red-headed Woodpecker's a bird of deep forest. Baltimore Oriole's a bird of forest edge. Each of these pictures took between 40 and 60 hours to do using a radio triggered camera. Just not-- no way I can't move the needle, it is just too hard.

So, then I thought, you know what let's just do this very basic. Let's just get people to look these animals in the eye on black and white backgrounds, that's what we're gonna do. Instead of this let's do this. Instead of this animal just going to become stew that night in a bush meat market in Equatorial Guinea, lets take black velvet and make him immortal. So we have. He's run all over the world now. Sydney Opera House, Empire State Building, you name it. Up to half of all species of amphibian could be lost in the next 20 years, say. Not only to fungus, but climate change competition from invasive species but aren't they amazing? Look at this Siren, the little vestigial legs the little tiny legs left over. Or this Budgett's frog, growling like a mad cat with a tooth, a baby-tooth in the top of its mouth can puncture your hand clean through. Or this terrible poison dart frog transporting tadpoles to safety here. You have a cut on your hand you touch it in the wild you die. That's it. I went to a lab in Ecuador, the guy, he's got this frog he puts it down in front of me at this breeding center. Take a picture of this, nine left. Take a picture of this, five left. Take a picture of this, four left. And then this one, the last Rabb's fringe-limbed treefrog. The very last one, that's it. When it goes extinct, game over, there are no more. So, I show this frog everywhere I go hoping that people will care. How do we get people to care about a frog? Just how do we get people to think that this frog matters to them? That is a tall order. And in the ten years that I've been doing this project this has gone extinct, this has gone extinct and this, and this, and this. This is right on a cusp. This little guy, an isopod, lives in hot water in that bathtub, that's it. Or the Northern White Rhino named Nabiré at the Dvůr Králové Zoo, this summer in the Czech Republic. She was really old. And she had cysts. And they knew those cysts we're going to be a problem but she was too old to anaesthetize and put under to work on. So, we got there this summer, rolled out the black velvet photographed her, sweetest rhino ever. And at the end of the shoot, she was tired and she laid down and went to sleep. And she died seven days later. And now the world has four. And they are all too old to breed. And that's it.

We also did the South China Tiger. I thought I'd show you guys how these pictures are done a little bit. This is just day-light coming in. They let me paint the background of an off-exhibit space black. But they mixed a little bit of red in with it because the Chinese, you gotta have good luck. This is without anything, this is with the lights these are straight out of the camera pretty much. Zoomed in, there you go. South China Tiger, a hundred left. All descended from six original founding animals. How will they do? I don't know. Not many in the wild left, if any.

Why the black and white backgrounds? Well, they're the great equalizer, like like the gun of the old west was the great equalizer. This tiger is no more important that the Tiger Beetle. Probably a little less complicated actually. And this bison is no more important than a Bog Turtle. Most people want to concentrate on the big stuff the odd stuff. Of course, of course. The furry mammals, the creepy things. What is it? Oh, we love cats, not so much insects. But insects and small critters they really make the world go around. Snakes we have to cover, snakes we have to-- cover things that crawl on the ground. It ain't all grizzly bears, it ain't all koalas as much as we'd like it to be. We run these pictures up the Geographic NG Instagram flagpole routinely. There's about 33-34 million people see these pictures. You know what people respond to the most? Mammals and animals that look like us. The more they stand up, the more people like them. Insects, snakes, turtles not so much. I don't blame 'em. Who doesn't want to see a Malayan Tapir baby with spots that match the forest floor perfectly. Zoos actually are the ark. Zoos are the ones that really take care to make sure we have assurance colonies of animals until we get smart enough as a species to set land aside that these animals need. And we need it too, believe me. Now, do the animals like to be photographed? Well, some of them get a kick out of helping me edit actually. Some of them are okay with it, some are very shy and bashful. Some get sleepy during the shoot. These mice hated it they plotted how to get out of the tent. Hated it. Most birds, you know what we put them in these shooting containment tents. They're not exactly as relaxed, most of them as these Blue Waxbills. This Hornbill we worked out in the open. She worked for grapes. Fantastic! Most of these animals are born and raised in captivity. It's enrichment for them in a way. They get extra treats and we work with these zoos months in advance to make sure that we're working with animals that will tolerate the process fine. We haven't heard anything yet in many, many, many species.

We're starting to do more video now. We're starting to make things walk and talk as we say. We need things that are moving to show people what these animals are like alive. The thing is I think when people see these animals they don't realize that so much nature is on the run. Half of all species could be lost to extinction by 2100. Half of every species of bird or frog or fish you've ever known as a child. Half of everything could be gone by 2100. The great thing is it doesn't have to be that way. All these amazing creatures can be saved. We just have to put a little attention into it. People say, “do you get depressed?” “Never, ever, no!” This is a great time to do a lot. There's never been a better time. Think about the power of something that goes viral to literally not only stop a problem from happening but reverse it. And help. People all around the world have a great capacity to want to help. We have to get people to think more about animals as being like us. After all, our fate is tied to them intrinsically. Intrinsically. We can't live without 'em. Maybe by looking animals in the eye, we'll get there. We're about 5,000 species into a 12,000 species quest. Ten years into it. I figure if I live another 10-15 years, it'll work out. Notice that out of all of these primates I really love primates, I really do. You don't see any chimps. Here's why there's no chimps.

-What do you think? So we're pretty good.

-They're pretty strong. I hear they can rip your rip your... arm off and beat you to death with it, right?

-Exactly. If you don't bleed to death first they'll beat you to death with it. So, now doesn't this look nice? Doesn't this look nice? Perfect, it's perfect for chimps. How long will that last? 60 seconds?

I don't see what's so funny. Hey, let's look at some proof that people really can turn things around when they put their minds to it. Let's look at proof. The giant panda, safe and secure for now. How 'bout that? Here in North America, the Whooping Crane the California Condor, the Mexican Gray Wolf Black-footed Ferret, even the Vancouver Island Marmot. All these animals got down to fewer than two dozen. And they are not out of the woods completely but they are in the hundreds now. They are stable. How 'bout that? Because people cared. People cared. That's it. All you have to do is pay attention. How are these pictures used in general? Well, National Geographic... they gobble 'em up. They are used on the cover of annual reports and in anti-palm oil campaigns and on zoo websites we give these pictures away free to every zoo, captive rehab center private breeder, aquarium we work at. And they are supposed to go to work. The goal is to have these pictures go to work long after we are all dead and it may be that the true value of Photo Ark doesn't happen for another hundred years when people go back and they see what we have. Maybe they'll save what they have left. The expansiveness of the ark is growing we expect it to grow at about 700 species a year. We're not trying to get everything on the face of the Earth, there's millions. We're trying to get everything in captivity. For those of you who still doubt that you can make a difference... Margaret Mead said it so well “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it's the only thing that ever has.” That's all there is to it. Thank you folks.

Saving Animals Through Photography

Experts estimate that half of our planet's species will become extinct by the year 2100. National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore is trying to change those projections. He aims to inspire people to care more about the animals we share Earth with through stunning photography. To date, Sartore has photographed more than 5,000 species in zoos and preserves around the world. His goal is to complete portraits of the world's 12,000 captive species and to compile them in his Photo Ark project—before they disappear.

The National Geographic Live series brings thought-provoking presentations by today’s leading explorers, scientists, photographers, and performing artists right to you. Each presentation is filmed in front of a live audience at National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C. New clips air every Monday.